Cross My Heart & Hope To Spy Zach's POV
by c0ntr0versial
Summary: The story of Zachary Goode and his thoughts during CMH. Updated regularly and written well - please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

For Zachary Goode, life had never been very colourful. From a young age, he had been surrounded by dull colours of grey, black and shades of metal. Nothing changed when he started his 'education' at the Blackthorne Institute. He was surrounded by the drab stone walls, the sharp fencing and the miserable weather. The only bright colour he'd ever really had – or worn – in his life was a garish yellow that the jumpsuits were that was mandatory for all students to wear at Blackthorne.

Now, at the age of sixteen, the beginning of the end of his training was here. That meant harder, more brutal CoveOps assignments, deadlier methods in P & E and quicker rifles in target shooting. He was as tough as nails, outside and – as some said – inside. After all: how can one train to be an assassin if one does not have the mind to assassinate?

As if my body had set a natural alarm clock; my eyes opened at 5am sharp. I was awake and alert at once. Almost robotically, I got out of bed and dressed into my jumpsuit - the sharp, ringing bell to rouse everyone would go off in 43 seconds. Morning drills are the beginning of every day at Blackthorne – when I first came here – when my Mother left me to go off with the Circle – I detested them, but now I feel that they prepare me mentally for what the rest of the day brings.

I go to a school for assassins – a school that trains them. I don't want to be one. They've moulded me into one though – my mind thinks like a killer, a predator. I hope that somehow, someday I can put this ability to good use – maybe to get inside the mind of a killer and figure out their next move before they do.

As I moved to the small window of our dorm, I was hit by the cold. It was the middle of January and well below freezing outside. _Hard ground to fall on, _I thought. Barely under my control, my mind knew the attack that would knock out and – with this ground – kill the target.

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. Just as I had expected, the bell rang, loud and clear. Just another day at Blackthorne.

We all thought.

Jonas, Grant and I made our regular route to the field where the drills for P & E began, but were cut short in our tracks. There was a huge, glossy helicopter – an A-129 to be exact – on the ground. 7 seconds later, Dr Steve stepped out of it, smiling.

"Morning all. Is anyone excited to find out where we're going today?" No-one responded. "Fantastic. Well. Today gentlemen, we have the first of 3 CoveOps Assessments for you. This one is a little... different than normal. No guns. No violence-" – you could hear some of my classmates sigh in disappointment, but my mind was racing. "- your mission is to distract a target from their mission. More details in the helicopter. Everyone on board please! Fantastic."

Over the next thirteen minutes and twenty-four seconds, we acquired more knowledge about our mission from Dr. Steve. We were going to Washington D.C. – a good 90 minutes ride away – and had to wear costumes. I was feeling slightly unimpressed, so I asked Dr. Steve:

"Who exactly will we be tailing, Sir?"

His eyes lit up in excitement. "Trained operatives Zach, a similar age to you." He paused. "Female." The whole cabin ushered into silence. I couldn't believe my ears, either, but I had to stay professional. I stayed quiet as he handed paper with pictures and information regarding the target assigned to us. Unable to hide my grin, I read my paper. I could hardly believe my luck. For months, I had been keeping check on the C.I.A. records to see if anything interesting had popped up. I never thought I would meet her, let alone get to tail her. My mind was racing with thoughts to see what she was really like in action. It said:

CAMERON MORGAN

AGE: 15 YEARS

HEIGHT: 5"5

WEIGHT: 118LLBS…..

Followed by a load of information I already knew. I folded the paper in my hands and put it in my costume pocket. It mind come in hand later. I thought I had seen everything, but the picture remained.

My first impression was that she wasn't pretty. Not ugly, just average. A clean face, straight, brown hair, friendly smile. _Oh well, _I mused, _no-one looks good in those photos anyway. Best see what she's like in real life. _Although, it would probably be better for me if she was as unattractive as possible. I had never been in this situation before.


	2. Chapter 2

"Man, I'm bored here. We should move on, they could be miles away." Grant said. I was tempted to agree, although to occupy myself I was recalling the height of the last 47 people that had walked past. We had been surveying from a rusty park bench for 16 minutes. Dr. Steve had instructed us to work in pairs and remember the important fact that in surveillance, patience is a virtue. I slouched and exhaled loudly. _It sure was. _

"Alright," I replied, taking one last panoramic sweep of the area. "Where do you sugge-" That's when I saw them. Grant's target - Rebecca, and my target, Cameron. I replayed the thought in my head - _my girl. _I felt Grant stiffen next to me and sit up. He'd seen them too. We leaned closer and watched them together; transfixed.

Rebecca was striking – tall, with dark skin and lean with long limbs. With a mane of glossy black hair and olive skin, she could have been from somewhere halfway across the world. She was unusual, but looked fierce at the same time – a deadly combination for some. We were unable to take our eyes off them – Grant looked almost hypnotized.

I could see Cameron behind Rebecca. I recognised her from the photo, but there was something about her you couldn't capture with a lens. She radiated something that drew you in – this energy; a glow. Breathing deeply and trying to maintain a nonchalant position on the bench, I studied her more closely. I itched to get nearer.

She had quite pale skin, but it complemented her features. From what I could see, her eyes were dark, darker than her hair. She was slim, but looked sturdily built. The way she moved was graceful and purposeful at the same time. I had never seen anything like it. _This is going to be an interesting assignment._

I focused on what they were doing. Rebecca looked playful, twirling about in the breeze and hugging Cameron – obviously enjoying herself. I studied Cameron. She looked distant, a little sad, as if her mind were somewhere else. She seemed to be holding Rebecca back from coming over to the bench. Was she shy? Worried? Focused on her mission? My heart picked up speed. If they came over, would we blow our cover? I felt uncharacteristically nervous. I yearned for them to walk towards us and introduce themselves, but at the same time I wished they would leave so I could get back to doing what I was good at – _being a spy. _To think that just by noticing Cameron, my mind had gone so far off track, scared me. A tingle went down my spine at the thought of having to speak to her – _my girl -_ in person. I looked up at the winter sky, endless possibilities running through my mind.

Somebody nearby stepped on a twig with a loud snap and it shook me out of my trance. We were supposed to be tailing them, I thought, not staring at them like gormless idiots! I looked at Grant, who was looking at me expectantly, then back at the girls – but to my surprise, they had gone.

"They went this way," Grant motioned with his right hand.

"Let's go." I said. The mission had officially begun.

After 73 minutes, I had come to a pretty valid conclusion. These girls were _good. _Not just good, they knew _exactly _what they were doing. Especially my girl – after all, she was the pavement artist in this situation. It had taken most of Grant and mine's attention to at least keep them in sight – I'd had to stop quickly for food to give me a burst of sugar so my energy levels remained high.

Even though it was plain to see they were trying to lose a tail – they did it extremely well. From my judgement, we had walked around the museum approximately eight times; a distance of 5.4km.

Their next move was smart – they blended in with a group of giggling schoolgirls, dressed in similar outfits – I thought I'd lost them both, but thankfully Rebecca's height stood out. I thought it would be better to keep my eyes on the back of Rebecca's head than Cameron's, since I knew they were together – I might lose track of them both, let alone my thoughts.

I was consciously aware of every face surrounding me. I knew James was in front of us, wearing a navy officer's suit, although I wasn't sure of whom he was tailing. I knew there was a woman with bleached hair telling off her son four metres behind us. I knew outside, there was a rotating advertisement board, opposite one of the windows of the museum. Perfect for a headshot. I could hear a man having a conversation with his wife about what was for dinner. I could smell the hot dog stand and instant coffee, as well as Grant's shampoo.

Grant looked as if he was about to run out of patience - tailing wasn't exactly his strong point, since it involved nothing with a sharp point. We reached the top of the escalator.

Suddenly, a loud screech followed by a gust of air meant a train had arrived – the girls dashed towards it – I looked to Grant to see if he thought we should get on, but he shook his head and pointed his head subtly to the left. They were hiding in the shadows by the train, unaware that although they had lost one tail, they still had two remaining. I stopped Grant from walking closer – we needed to see them make their next move.

I watched them speak to each other, barely moving their lips but understanding everything they said to each other. Obviously they knew one another extremely well. Rebecca nodded once and then walked past Cameron's shoulder, her face blank. Cameron waited 4 seconds then turned and walked out of the station, towards the elevator.

Grant coughed lightly and I turned to look at him quickly. We understood each other just as they had done.

We were about to make the last resort: putting yourself directly in the way of the target's mission. That meant one thing – meeting Cameron Morgan in person.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to everyone that has read so far! Please review and tell me what you think - this was a hard chapter and I wanted to make sure everything was ok! Thanks :-)**

It was as if time slowed down. I mesmerised each detail of her face. It unnerved me how breakable she looked up close – I felt as if I should protect her, not tail her on a CoveOps assignment. The soft, rosy cheeks, the button nose, the full cupids bow lips, the bright cognac coloured eyes that were staring straight back into mine. I realised she was staring at me in shock – I had rudely pushed in front of her to get to the elevator in time, purely out of desperation to stay on her tail. I gave her a friendly nod of the head and said "Hey."

She broke off eye contact sharply and responded bluntly. "Hi." My heart sped up. Why was I so desperate for her to like me, to get to know me? _Someone needs a reality check, _I thought.

From a spy's point of view, I worried if she had me figured out. We entered the elevator and stood opposite each other. Trying to keep cool, I leaned against the side and decided to make small talk. In the reflection of the elevator I could see she was looking at me – which, in theory, should have been pleased me – although her expression was the same sad, distant one she'd worn earlier.

The crest on her shirt caught my attention. "So," I began, desperate to break the silence, "The Guggenheim Academy –"

"Gallagher Academy," She responded with a roll of her eyes – did she get that a lot? Or perhaps she thought I was mentally incompetent.

I tried to dig a little deeper – was this the girl's equivalent of Blackthorne? Could she be a 'Gallagher Girl'? "I've never heard of it."

As if stating the obvious, she said, "Well, it's my school."

Another sharp reply. I couldn't help but wonder if I was getting on her nerves. _A day of being tailed couldn't exactly have been fun, _my subconscious told me. I knew; I hoped, she was friendlier in real life.

The sound of her tapping her foot quickly on the ground caught my attention. Four years of training meant I could read her like a book.

"You in a hurry or something?"

"Actually, I'm supposed to meet my teacher at the ruby slipper exhibit. I've only got twenty minutes, and if I'm late, he'll kill me." She gushed; speaking quickly but clearly. I smiled, glad that we had got past three or four word responses. _I bet Joe would, _I thought, _but he'd do even worse for telling me all that information. _I couldn't quite believe my ears – she'd just told me all the details of her mission.

Either I was doing a great job, or she was not as good a spy as I was led to believe. Probably the former. I replayed what she had just said to me in my head. It became apparent that she wasn't wearing a watch – how would she know how long she had? I couldn't help myself.

"How do you know?" I asked.

Another eye roll. "Because he said, 'Meet me at the ruby slipper exhibit.'"

I had to smile at that. Did I have to make it more obvious? "How do you know you only have twenty minutes? You're not wearing a watch."

For half a second, my trained eyes saw hers widen in shock and she swallowed roughly. Then she controlled herself. "My friend just told me." She said with a small smile. To any other stranger, the lie would have been believable. But then again, what was I? _Spy. _She went back to tapping her foot and started picking at her nails.

"You fidget a lot." I wondered if it was the right thing to say – would she think I was taking too much notice of her? I shoved my hands in my pockets.

"I'm sorry, I have low blood sugar." That was believable. It was back; the protective instinct. She looked tired and hungry, but what could I do? My hands felt the wrapper of the food I bought earlier. _Bingo. _

"Here," I said, handing her the M&M's. "I ate most of them already." She knitted her eyebrows and I couldn't help but notice the cute pucker between them. She looked slightly at war with herself.

"Oh…um…" She licked her lips. "That's ok. Thanks though." She averted her eyes and smoothed the pleats in her skirt.

"Oh, ok."

So I went back to staring at her. What else could I do? She was fascinating to watch – my expert eyes picked out details others would discard – the bruises on her forearms from training or previous assignments, the way she girl-ishly wrapped one leg around the other. The way she would be the perfect height against me. How she was just the right size that I could wrap my arms around her. I sighed. The elevator came to the correct level.

"Thanks again for the chocolate." She said quickly then practically sprinted from the elevator. I followed her, my stride easily meeting hers.

Suddenly, she whirled on me, and I caught a scent of lavender from her hair. My stomach flipped. "Where are you going?" She questioned me.

Surely she didn't think I'd let her get away _that _easily.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gallagher Girl series and I am not Ally Carter *sob***

**Authors note: Here's chapter 4, folks! I may even upload another tonight if I have time. If there are any Zammie moments you're particularly looking forward to, please share and I'll try and make them extra good ;-) And any improvements! It's tough being inside a guys head.**

…"I thought we were going to meet your teacher in the wonderful world of Oz?" I replied, making my tone and expression as innocent as possible.

Her voice raised an octave. "_We?"_

"Sure. I'm going with you." I said casually.

"No you're not." She looked me dead in the eyes, but I met them with a level stare. _Try chivalry, _I reasoned. It would protect my cover.

"Look," I nodded outside. "It's dark. You're by yourself. And this _is _Washington D.C." Of course I knew she would be able to protect herself – but I could do a better job. "And you've only got…. fifteen minutes to meet your teacher." It was a calculated guess – she actually only had thirteen minutes and twenty six seconds, but saying that would sound bizarre.

She looked past my shoulder, lost in thought. I could almost hear the cogs grinding in her head. The soft light from the streetlights highlighted her cheekbones and I noticed how long her eyelashes were.

Without warning, she just continued to walk in the direction of the exhibit.

"Fine." I heard her say quietly. Hiding my smile, I walked next to her, but was

surprised by how quickly she walked. _She must be a fast runner, _I mused.

"You can really walk fast," I noted. I waited for a few seconds, but there was no reply. She looked cold – I would've offered her my coat if I'd had one. Was Cameron short for anything? I wondered. "So, do you have a name?"

"Sure. Lots of them." She said coolly. An unexpected response – one I hadn't anticipated. I looked at her and smiled at her eccentricity.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" It just popped out. I barely even heard myself say it. She sighed heavily, as if she had a lot more on her mind.

Unfortunately, she avoided the question altogether. "Look, thanks for the chivalry and all… but it really isn't necessary. It's just up here." Her eyes surveyed our surroundings. "And there's a cop over there."

"What?" I couldn't believe my ears. The cop had a beer belly. "You think that guy can do a better job protecting you than I can?"

She smirked. "No, I think it you don't leave me alone, I can scream and that cop will arrest you." Unable to resist smiling at her smile, I grinned in return. She looked at the ground and I had to restrain myself from giving her a cheeky elbow. I decided for now, it was best to leave her. The biggest surprise would come later. Turning away, I started calculating the quickest route to the exhib- the sound of her voice stopped me. Instinctively, I turned around.

"Hey," She shrugged. "Thanks anyway." I walked away, knowing it wouldn't be the last time we saw each other.

Thankfully, I arrived before she did. Joe was there; wearing the same focused façade as usual. We caught one another's eyes as I arrived quietly, and with a small shake of his head and a sly smile, I backed into the shadows. I could hardly wait for what was coming.

There she was - looking slightly flustered but extremely proud of herself. _And rightly so, _I joked. Joe walked calmly from where he was waiting to meet her.

"You're four seconds late."

She half smiled, her eyes glistening. "But I'm alone."

"No, Ms Morgan. You're not."

Her eyebrows rose in shock and her cheeks became pink with embarrassment. As I walked slowly towards her with a sheepish smile on my face, her mouth dropped open.

"Hi again, Gallagher Girl."

For a second, I regretted my cocky remark. Her eyes lowered to the ground and her chin trembled. Had I upset her? She must have known it wasn't that important. Every bone in my body wanted to walk up to her, stroke her soft cheek, look her in the eyes and tell her that it didn't really matter; I knew what a great spy she really was.

Joe's voice broke through my thoughts. "Nice work, Zach." I looked at her desperately for some clue of her emotions. I winked in an attempt to lift the mood. She held my gaze and looked at me with intent.

She inhaled and smiled slightly. "Hi, Blackthorne Boy."


	5. Chapter 5

Well _that _was unexpected. Joe looked as shocked as I felt. He recovered himself quickly, however and said "Very good, Ms Morgan." Then, knowingly, he smiled at me. "But not good enough."

In the corner of my eye I saw Cameron blush beetroot red. Normally, I would've been proud of my success – but there was something about her expression that made it impossible.

Her eyes flashed to mine and I saw a hint of anger - I knew I should tread carefully in reply to whatever she was about to say. "Your mission was what?" She demanded, her voice clear. "To keep us from achieving our mission?"

"Something like that." I couldn't help but let out an exasperated laugh. "I thought I could make you late for your meeting. I didn't think you'd actually tell me where it was and walk me halfway there." She grimaced, and her eyes rested on the ruby slippers.

I allowed myself one last look at her.

Then I walked away, and didn't look back.

On the return to Blackthorne, everyone was in good spirits. As a general outcome, we were better than 'The Gallagher Girls' – which Dr. Steve thought was "Fantastic."

My mind, however, was elsewhere. As I watched the trees, rivers and mountains fly by all I could think about was the way that things had been left with _my _Gallagher Girl. I thought about the way I had been so fascinated with her – on reflection, I felt foolish and idiotic. I had only met her, only seen her _once_. How could I have thought like that when I would never see her again?

Mentally kicking myself, I decided to resolve things. From this moment on, I would simply forget her. In the future, I would not let females get in between me and my mission. In the long term I knew this was the best option for me as an agent. I hoped.

Eventually we arrived back at Blackthorne. My body felt tired from the events of the day, and I was somehow comforted to be back into the normal gruelling routine. To be honest, I couldn't wait to crash in my bed and sleep.

At dinner, which was normally quite quiet, comments about what my group had done today were all that was being talked about. As I had been there, I couldn't be bothered to listen, so I wolfed my dinner down and headed to the exercise area for evening drills. _A good workout to get your mind off things _– 'things' that happened to begin with a C and end in n – _then sleep. _

The punch bag was perfect to take out my anger for what I had let myself do today. With each punch, I could feel Cameron slipping my mind. I focused on my technique: light on the toes, _uppercut, _use the shoulder, _jab, jab, _hands high and elbows low, _hook. _I stopped and was breathing heavily; after 20 minutes sweat was covering my face and chest. I moved onto the next drill: sparring with Grant. Things were almost getting back to normal, and for that, I was happy.

After a steaming shower and a surprise test on foreign currency, my mind felt fatigued. I climbed into bed and was about to close my eyes when I noticed Jonas, my roommate and friend, frantically typing on his laptop. His huge reading glasses showed the reflection of his computer.

"What are you looking at?" I asked him.

He spared me a quick glance before going back to typing. "I'm hacking into the Gallagher Academy's records to find out information about the girl I tracked today."

"Why?"

Smirking slightly, he cocked and eyebrow and said "Why not?"

I couldn't deny that I was intrigued. I climbed out of my bed and, feeling the cold, walked over where he was sitting. At first, all I could see was a page of encryption and codes but he pressed one key and suddenly we were in. I'd forgotten how useful Jonas could be.

"Who were you tracking today?" I said.

"A girl called Anna Fetterman. She actually got to the slippers – I can't believe I let her slip through my fingers. I want to find out what else she's really good at _and _what she's not so good at." I felt a little puzzled at why he needed to know this information, but let him do what he wanted. Suddenly a light bulb went off in my head – I knew I had promised myself not to think about her earlier, but what harm could there be in looking at Cameron's file?

"Mind if I search someone after you?"

"Sure man. Just tell me when you're done."

Five minutes later, I was staring at the first photo I'd seen of Cam – the one Dr. Steve had given us. I scrolled down the rest of her file:

NAME: CAMERON ANN MORGAN

NICKNAMES: CAMMIE, THE CHAMELEON

AGE: 15 YEARS

SOPHOMORE

PARENTS: RACHEL AND MATTHEW MORGAN

MATTHEW (ON CIA MISSING REGISTER – POSSIBLY DECEASED)

LIVES WITH MOTHER; HEADMISTRESS OF GALLAGHER ACADEMEY FOR EXCEPTIONAL YOUNG WOMEN

SIBLINGS: N/A

STRENGTHS: COVERT OPERATIONS, P & E, AND FOREIGN LANGUAGES – CIA HOPEFUL

WEAKNESSES: LABORATORY WORK

HISTORY:

BEGAN RELATIONSHIP WITH SUBJECT OUTSIDE OF GALLAGHER ACADAMEY APPROXIMATELY 4 MONTHS AGO, PRETENDING TO BE A CIVILIAN OF ROSEVILLE, VIRGINIA.

(EXAMPLE): CLAIMED TO HAVE CAT CALLED SUZIE

ROMANTIC INVOLVEMENT SUSPECTED. RELATIONSHIP TERMINATED 3 WEEKS AGO.

UTILISATION OF TRAINING OCCURRED IN ORDER FOR CAMERON TO DEVELOP RELATIONSHIP WITH SUBJECT.

(EXAMPLE): SUBJECT FOLLOWED CAMERON INTO COVERT OPERATIONS FINAL.

SUBJECT GIVEN MEMORY MODIFICATION TEA IN ORDER TO ASSURE FURTHER CONTACT WOULD NOT BE INITIATED.

Further contact would not be initiated.

Further contact would not be initiated.

Reading Cammie's file had my mind in knots – _further contact needs to be initiated, _I thought.

_Gallagher girls have secrets too, _I thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gallagher Girl series and I am not Ally Carter**

I was in such a deep slumber that I barely heard the loud siren going off. It didn't feel like 5am – I looked outside and it was still pitch black. The trees, barely visible, were surrounded by a thick layer of fog, and the frost on the grass showed no signs of melting soon. I looked at Jonas, who was frantically pulling a jumper over his head to keep warm.

"What are we doing up so early?" I asked, my voice croaky with disuse and sleep.

He rubbed his face and sighed. "I dunno." Jonas wasn't really a morning person.

I began to layer up on clothes, expecting some kind of morning run, when Dr. Steve's voice rang through the speakers that were in every dormitory in Blackthorne Institute. "Would the following students please make their way to the helicopter pad in 8 minutes sharp. Zachary Goode, Grant…" He rattled off fifteen other names, including Jonas'. We looked at each other, clueless as to where we might be heading off to at three forty five in the morning. "You will be required to pack a month's worth of clothing, including basic toiletries. Pack efficiently. P & E kit is required – mirrors for some of you perhaps! Hahaha. See you in 6 minutes and 43 seconds." There was a sharp crackle as he signed off.

Jonas shrugged his shoulders at me and got packing. I followed suit, but couldn't stop thinking about where we would be going for a _4 weeks_. Was it some kind of mission abroad? That would certainly be interesting. My hands did the packing for me and my mind kept thinking. In 3 minutes I was ready, so in my spare time I splashed ice cold water on my face to wake myself up and went to the toilet.

With my backpack heavy on my shoulders and my mind racing with thoughts, Jonas and I paced onto the pad, our breath visible in the crisp morning air. The sound of the helicopter would certainly wake Jonas up. We jumped in the helicopter, and I pulled my hoodie's dark grey sleeves over my fists and the hood over my head. I crossed my arms and studied my companions in the helicopter. Everyone looked halfway between sleep and consciousness, apart from Grant, who was visibly alert and ready to go.

"Does anybody know where we're going?" I asked, meeting everyone's eyes. No one responded, but a few seconds later Dr. Steve bounced into the passenger seat of the helicopter cockpit.

"Morning guys! Anybody curious to know where we're off to?" He beamed, and shuffled some papers on a clipboard – keeping the suspense levels up as usual. His eyes twinkled in the darkness. "We, the Blackthorne Institute for Boys, are off to study for the next 4 weeks with the glorious ladies at the Gallagher Academy for Extraordinary Young Women." I let out a breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding. I was glad I hadn't had time to eat anything. "For the twenty 28 days that we are there, you will sleep, eat, learn and train with the girls. The aim is for you to become more… rounded individuals. You will make allies, friends and companions with whom you should be able to trust. You will be doing a joint Covert Operations mock and final assessment at towards the end of the two weeks." Everyone in the cabin looked equally shocked – it was the last thing I think any of us had expected. Some of the boys looked nervous, others excited. Grant was just smiling slyly.

Jonas elbowed me in the side and whispered "I have a feeling our research will come in handy here." Then winked. I couldn't have agreed more, although I didn't know how I felt to see Cammie again – there was so much I knew about her that I felt I shouldn't. It was unusual for my kind to feel this way, but I felt as though I were intruding.

"As usual, we expect you all to be on your _best _behaviour. By that, we obviously mean doing the best you can in everything the Academy organised for you. The curriculum here is the toughest in the world and different to ours in many ways. Any questions?" He looked around the cabin.

"What time do we get there?" I asked.

He checked his papers. "Our estimated time of arrival is 7:45am. We should get there just after the girls finish their breakfast, then we'll join them for their first lesson of the day which is…" Again, he looked on his list. "Countries of the World." A few sceptical eyebrows raised in the cabin. "Right!" Dr. Steve said. "I'll make an announcement when we're about fifteen minutes away so you can," He quirked an eyebrow "Freshen up."

The majority of the cabin fell asleep in about two minutes, and eventually the sound of the helicopter blades gently lulled me to sleep, dreaming of the Gallagher Academy.

**What did you think? Please review! I have to admit I'm pretty excited to see what happens when Zach and the rest of the Blackthorne Boys turn up at the Gallagher Academy. Next chapter up very soon!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gallagher Girl series and I am not Ally Carter**

**Hey guys! Sorry for not updating for the past couple of days – I had a Spanish speaking exam today which I had to revise for. **

**Soon, I'll be starting my second FanFic – The Hunger Games from Gale and Peeta's POV. How does that sound? Tell me if you'd be interested! **

**Anyway, on with the chapter….**

At precisely half past 7, as Dr. Steve had instructed, we were woken up. We were given 'uniforms' to change into – simple dark blue polo shirts with the Blackthorne crest on the left breast, along with black trousers and formal shoes. Jonas was swallowed up by his, as there wasn't much to his lanky frame, but Grant seemed to like his a fair bit – it did show his biceps, after all.

As Dr. Steve handed out granola bars, fruit juice cartons and apples for breakfast, I peered out of the window to see what our surroundings were like. The ground was a cloak of green; trees everywhere. In the distance I saw town, bathed in the morning sunlight. Everything looked surprisingly normal – it wasn't the kind of place you'd expect a school training spies to be situated.

Eventually, we began to descend. The Academy came into view. The boys all craned their necks out of the window to get a peek – not that I could blame them.

Although I'd seen a few small pictures on my sweep of the Gallagher Academy database, it was nothing compared to the real thing.

It was a stately home with hundreds of years of family history, meaning tons of secret passageways to explore; nooks and crannies in to discover in every room. To me, it felt like the kind of place a period drama would be filmed, with classical music playing softly in the background. It was an inquisitive spy's dream – you could spend days going round it, learning the place inside out. _The kind of place where a book in a library opens up a secret door, _I mused.

The sun shined across the well kept lawns at the front of the Academy, and the round hedges between the stairways to the entrance were perfectly circular. The walls were a sandy stone colour, the curtains in every room drawn. There were countless chimneys covering the grey tiled roof, and gardens that looked as if they spanned miles. To my surprise, there were no modern facilities in sight – how they were to acquire their CoveOps knowledge and experience was unfathomable. _Maybe they're underground._

We touched down on the grass and everyone piled out of the helicopter. The grass - unlike the hard, stony turf at Blackthorne – was soft and cushion-like beneath my feet. I resisted the impulse to reach down and touch it. We made our way swiftly to the east of the building, where we all dumped our bags in an empty hall. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop. Then, we were all walked together towards the centre of the building, and before I knew it, huge wooden doors had been slammed open, and we were standing in the doorway of a huge hall with five hundred girls staring at us.

The walls of the hall were a dark wood, with huge paintings of women – whom I supposed were important – covering the walls. There were also scrolls, and at the front of the hall a huge Gallagher crest. It smelt like breakfast, mixed with the dusty smell of old books. My stomach rumbled instinctively. It was like nowhere I had ever been before in my entire life.

I realised the population of the hall was in complete silence - apart from one woman speaking at the front of the hall – the headmistress, if my assumptions were correct – which meant she was Cammie's mother. I quickly scanned the rest of the hall, taking in the teachers table at the front, the vertical tables full of girls ranging from freshmen to seniors. I didn't see Cammie, but I knew she was there somewhere. Dr Steve took us to the front of the hall, thoroughly enjoying the attention from the people watching.

"It's my pleasure to introduce Dr Steven Saunders. Dr Saunders…" Then, rudely, Dr Steve pushed in front of Mrs Morgan, took hold of the mic and said,

"Dr. Steve."

"Excuse me?" She replied, surprise clear in her voice.

"Call me _Dr Steve," _He said, then punched the air with his fist. I inwardly cringed and studied the intricate carvings in the ceiling.

"Of course." Mrs Morgan said. "Dr Steve and his students will be spending the remainder of the semester with us." A vibration of shock spread through the room. "They will be attending your classes, eating with you at meals. Ladies, this is a wonderful opportunity, and I hope you will use this time to forge bonds of friendship that you can carry throughout your lives."

The majority of the pupils took this as a dismissal, and gathered up their breakfast things and headed to lessons. As Dr. Steve went round and introduced himself to the teachers of the Academy, our group slowly diffused across the hall, and I ended up following Grant and Jonas to the table next to the group of girls we were tailing yesterday – I spotted Rebecca, her sleek black hair and skin colour making her stand out as usual. I leaned against the end of the table and listened to the conversation – I picked out Cammie's voice and looked up.

She looked well – better than she had done in D.C. Her hair was loosely down, her uniform slightly faded with wear. She was leaning in to listen to something a friend had said – then suddenly, her eyes looked up and locked with mine. I smiled, and read the shock across her face, hoping it was more pleasant surprise than anything else.

_We meet again, Gallagher Girl._


End file.
